School Dropout Rate In Several States At Secondary Level Higher Than National Average, Reveals Study

The school dropout rate in several states is significantly rising as more students in the secondary level are signing off from their studies. More than a dozen states, including Bihar, West Bengal, Gujarat and Tripura, have a school dropout rate higher than the national average of 14.6 per cent.

The Project Approval Board (PAB) has given the information under the Ministry of Education's Samagra Shiksha programme for 2022-23. The central government has suggested that these states should take a step ahead to reduce the dropout rate.

According to officials, the government plans to achieve a 100 per cent Gross Enrolment Rate (GER) at the school level by 2030, as projected by National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, and the increasing school dropout rate in several states can become a hindrance to the same.

According to the data released by PAB, the dropout rate at secondary level education in 2020-21 in Gujarat was 23.3 per cent, Bihar 21.4 per cent, Madhya Pradesh 23.8 per cent, Karnataka 16.6 per cent and Jharkhand 16.6 per cent.

In Delhi, the approx number of students enrolled with Special Needs (CWSNs) during the 2020-21 period was over 60,000, out of which 67.5 per cent dropped out for unspecified reasons. PAB has asked the government of Delhi to bring the dropout children back to school as education is a crucial part of a student's life for their growth and development.

Why Do Students Dropout?

According to a survey conducted by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), almost 25 per cent of girls drop out of school due to marriage, and 33 per cent drop out due to domestic work. It was also found that many students, after dropping out, started working as a labourer and helping their families to make ends meet.

The former secretary of the Department of School Education and Literacy, Anil Swarup, said, "At gram panchayat and ward level, 'mapping' of children outside the purview of school education should be done. The teacher-parent level meeting should also be organised at least once a month in schools to spread awareness on this important issue," reported ABP Live.

He added that dropout students should be contacted by their respective schools to understand their reason for dropping out. Several other factors, such as early-age marriages, financial constraints, social commitments, and a discouraging environment, also lead to dropping out of students.

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